Reviews tagging 'Racism'

The Island of Doctor Moreau and Other Stories by H.G. Wells

41 reviews

moreau's review against another edition

adventurous reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

my favorite book ever. the language is hilarious, the characters are fucking amazing which is a first for hg wells, hell most of them even have names. he never names his characters or gives them any depth but these characters are actual people. still not fleshed out or anything but theyre there. prendick is boring and an average wells mc, has no opinions on anything. and Montgomery is kind of confusing, if you watch all the movie adaptations of this he's completely different in all of them yet all are somehow accurate to his book counterpart, but moreau is a solid character. hes just chill like that. love the pink sloth. this book completely changed the way i see the world, every biology class i have i mention it, everywhere i go theres a reference to it that goes over most people's heads and I'm like "oohh ohh i know that!!" (totally ruined the mighty boosh and the simpsons for me.) this book basically made me a furry because im so obsessed with if it could actually happen or not. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Medical trauma, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Torture, and Body horror

Moderate: Blood, Alcoholism, Death, and Violence

Minor: Suicide attempt, Racism, Racial slurs, and Ableism

kwoolfre's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

is it bestiality to have sex with an animal that has been surgically modified to have human form and mental capacity? He seems to think so
But the racist stuff here is crazy

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Content Warnings

Minor: Racism

tungstenmouse's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book did not age well at all. Some of the attitudes presented are appalling by today’s standards. It’s also brutal and very dark. If you are very attached to animals you may have a very hard time with this. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Gore, Blood, Cursing, Death, Alcoholism, Body horror, Suicidal thoughts, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Violence, Torture, and Racism

Moderate: Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Ableism

auroraspectre's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

0.5

Honestly only finished this because it's so short; it was fast paced yet felt like it took a lifetime to read. I already had some knowledge of what happened due to Wells being such a staple in the sci-fi genre, but I found it to be pretty boring. The use of racist/ableist descriptors being used for Moreau's creations was not unexpected, given the year it was originally published, but it certainly didn't make it any less of a drag to read. I understand the message the author was going for, but it felt a bit too forced to me in this day and age despite it probably eliciting a different reaction upon release.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Injury/Injury detail, and Racism

kstericker's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Death

Moderate: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, and Racism

Minor: Cannibalism and Fire/Fire injury

hailstorm3812's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

I read this because I wanted to read the Daughter of Doctor Moreau. I thought I knew more culturally about this book than I actually did. I knew it was gonna be racist but wow. The thing about consuming media that set precedents is that it is never the best one. So many things after this have used a similar premise to much better results.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Racism, and Animal death

twocents's review against another edition

adventurous dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

A classic for a reason. It really made me think of how science interacts with the world around us today, and what that means for the world, for science, for humanity, and for us as individuals. The science isn't believable, but as it's just a tool to communicate a broader thought, I wasn't bothered by it.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Torture

Minor: Racism

thesapphiccelticbookworm's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Slavery, and Violence

Moderate: Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Forced institutionalization, and Kidnapping

Minor: Alcoholism, Alcohol, Religious bigotry, and Ableism

bookish_bry's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This was an interesting short read. It has a plot that keeps you engaged, but at the same time that plot isn't really the point of the story. This book is really just one big metaphor reflecting on humanity and what being human means. It's about what separates us from animals and what doesn't. I think the end where

  Prendick starts to see the animal traits in real humans

really drives this home. 

There's a lot of interesting things this book calls into question. I find myself thinking of the humanity of Doctor Moreau and  Montgomery verses the

beast people and wonder which actually express more humanity. I think on that island everyone slipped back to their natural beastly ways at least a bit even the humans and especially Moreau with his horrible cruelty. Montgomery as well seemed to show this with the way he just laid down and accepted Moreau's actions, seeming to slip a bit into obedience. You could even compare the way he bent to Moreau to the way his companion M'Ling bent to him.

Overall, I'd probably give the story about a 3 star rating, but if you view it as an extended metaphor, I'd give it a more than 4 star rating.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Racism, Gun violence, Murder, Body horror, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Suicide attempt and Fire/Fire injury

claremcg's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death and Death

Moderate: Racism and Misogyny